Gnarly to the Max

Here are four rather amazing (dare I say "totally tubular") videos I am currently sharing with everyone I know.

I love the Internet. I can spend hours bouncing along from one topic to another saying "Oooh, I never knew that!" Just the other day, for example, I was watching a film in which someone used the word "Gnarly," which I haven’t heard for ages, so I had a quick Google (it's OK, no one was looking) and discovered the following definitions:

GnarlyThe term "gnarly" is a piece of 1980’s slang that came from surf culture but had its meaning shift over the years. Originally, gnarly was applied to something that was tough or a bit ragged, particularly a set of towering waves or a skateboard trick gone wrong. “Did you see his arm after he ate it hard on that half-pipe? Gnarly, man.” Gradually, however, it took on a new meaning as a way to describe something good. “Gnarly pad you’ve got here man." Today, the word gnarly lives on, and can bear either meaning depending upon the situation.

GrodyThe term "grody" and the phrase "grody to the max" communicate that something is gross and distasteful and just ought not to exist. Think of that dude sitting one row up and over from you in 9th grade history class and his totally cheesy peach-fuzz mustache, complimented by his mullet and muscle shirt -- that is, like, grody to the max!

And don’t even get me started on "Totally Tubular," although… there are four rather amazing (dare I say "totally tubular") videos I am currently sharing with everyone I know. You may have already seen one or more of these, but I bet you haven't seen all of them, and even the ones you have seen are well worth a second look.

First up is an animation that just brings a smile to my face and makes me feel happy. It involves a hippopotamus singing "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" accompanied by a dancing dog. I hate to admit it, but I'm currently practicing the dog's dance moves:

Next we have an animation of a one-eyed alien singing "I will survive" (note the one-eyed "smiley face" on the T-Shirt). I admit that this is a bit of an "old chestnut," but it's still good for a laugh:

I saw the following video of a Parrot (a real-world one this time) driving and riding around on a buggy a couple of weeks ago, but then I forgot all about it until this morning when my chum Rick Curl sent me a link to it, so here it is for your delectation and delight:

And finally, for the moment, we have another animation of an alien taking his (her? its?) driving test in a flying saucer. This explains a lot…

If you have any totally tubular YouTube videos you would care to share, or any other gnarly or grody sayings (like "gag me with a spoon"), please email me at max.maxfield@ubm.com and I may include them in a follow-up blog.

If you found this article to be of interest, visit Programmable Logic Designline where – in addition to my Max's Cool Beans blogs – you will find the latest and greatest design, technology, product, and news articles with regard to programmable logic devices of every flavor and size (FPGAs, CPLDs, CSSPs, PSoCs...).

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After reading your article, how could you not think of this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufYYOXiEtxM
Not only am I having flashbacks to the 80's but I can't help but wonder why the big hair and bitchin' clothing never survived to the next decade. Ha!
To put things in perspective, MTV was barely a year old at the time (and actually played music videos) and the television executives figured this show was a good way to capitalize on the emerging trend. All hail the mighty lip-sync.